(BOX SCORE)
BROCKPORT, NY—Brockport (6-4/6-3) scored 28 unanswered points, including 21 in the second half, to pull away from Buffalo State (1-9/1-8) and claim the I-90 Bowl with a 44-16 victory in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) season finale.
Zack Luke paced the Brockport offense, going 26 of 34 for 347 yards and three touchdowns with one interception. Tamere Shannon led the receiving corps with 10 grabs for 138 yards and two scores, and Garet Lynch led the ground attack with 23 carries for 123 yards and two touchdowns.
Kenny Murphy (Lancaster/Lancaster) had his second-straight 300-yard passing game for the Bengals, going 19 of 44 for 301 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Greg Meyer (Lancaster/Lancaster) had six catches for 112 yards and a score to break the school record for receiving touchdowns (27).
Joe Russell (N. Tonawanda/N. Tonawanda) added five catches for 120 yards.
Matt Pacana (N. Tonawanda, NY/N. Tonawanda) led the defense with a team-high 11 tackles.
Brockport jumped out to the 3-0 lead on a 28-yard Jeff Cook field goal after blocking a punt on the Bengals' opening sequence. Buffalo State answered quickly, however, marching 64 yards in nine plays, capped by a
Sammy Smith (Buffalo/Hutch Tech) 7-yard touchdown run to gain the lead at 7-3.
The Golden Eagles responded on their next possession with an 8 play, 67-yard drive of their own, ending with a 21-yard run by Lynch to reclaim the lead.
The Bengals moved the ball again on the ensuing possession, including a 40-yard reception from Murphy to Russell, but the drive stalled and Buffalo State settled for a 35-yard field goal by
Josh Richbart (Cheektowaga/Maryvale) to even the score at 10-10 on the final play of the first quarter.
Brockport scored next on a 30-yard pass from Luke to Tim Hall, but failed on a two-point conversion and led 16-10. Buffalo State had matching fortunes on its next possession, cruising 77 yards in just five plays. The drive included consecutive receptions by Meyer, covering 38 and 25 yards, the latter ending with a touchdown. Richbart missed the extra point, however, leaving the score deadlocked at 16-16.
The score did not remain tied for long, as Brockport needed to two offensive plays to find the end zone again. After returning the kick to the Bengals' 44-yardline, Luke connected with Shannon for 36 yards and then an eight yard touchdown strike taking a 23-16 lead into halftime.
Brockport finally created some separation early in the second half, scoring a pair of touchdowns on it first two possessions, sandwiched around the interception of a Murphy pass. Shannon caught his second touchdown pass from 11 yards, before Lynch scored for the second time, on a 1-yard run, pushing the lead to 37-16.
Buffalo State then forced turnovers on three-consecutive Brockport possessions, with an interception and two fumbles, but could not convert any of them into points.
Brockport added a late touchdown on a 19-yard run by Hall to complete the scoring.
